As usual, I want to take a moment to thank TheBretonBookDragon, Ie-maru, and RG-Guest for their feedback following the previous update. In the case of Ie-maru, I'm glad you enjoyed the previous chapter- especially with Ulquiorra, when the audience is reminded that he's still a Hollow and thinks like one.
TO FORGE A
BETTER TOMORROW
Chapter XCIV:
"Beyond the Veil"
Soul Society, Division Twelve HQ...
Szayel returned to the teleportation platform, which included not just the physical object, but also the other components that comprised the rest of the overall system. The bespectacled Espada checked the display for the monitoring equipment, in time to see as it reached eighty-nine percent.
Suddenly, the imagery on the screen warped, only to be replaced by a familiar face.
"You!" Szayel exclaimed. "What the hell are you-?"
"We don't have time for this, not now!" The Man in White was quick to cut him off, his tone sounding far more forceful than usual. "This isn't an idle observation: Things are coming to a head, and we have be certain that the right players are in place when the time comes."
"Oh, and just who would these 'players' be?" The pink-haired Arrancar retorted.
"Both Miss Inoue and Ulquiorra Schiffer must to be sent through the Anomaly," the fair-haired man answered. "By now, it should be fully obvious to anyone in the know as to why she has to be one to be sent, just as it should also be clear why it's critical that Cuatro Espada accompany her."
A moment passed between them, before Szayel nodded. "Alright, if it's truly that critical... Then, I'll do whatever I can to make sure that things play out in that way."
He smiled and nodded at this. "Truthfully, my one regret is we lack the time for me to properly explain what's happening." The man explained. "And... that this may be our last contact."
Before he could respond, the screen returned to normal, displaying their progress at ninety percent!
"Kisuke," the Arrancar started, looking over to the man. "It's time that we moved out, so quick, get over here and help me with this." The golden-eyed man instructed.
"Right!" Urahara answered smartly with a smile, appearing at his side and placing his hand on a grip-bar, as the two men moved the entire setup out of the room...
"And, as of now," Szayel started as he addressed the former Shinigami while they moved down the hallway, heading towards the industrial area of the Twelfth Division. "We have fifteen- perhaps twenty minutes, at the most- before the system in online and ready to go."
There was a moment, in which the two shared a look between them. "I understand." The blonde-haired man replied as they continued moving. "I'm ready to see this to the end."
Moving the setup onto a large industrial lift, Szayel picked up a control and pressed a button...
"Tell me something." Urahara spoke as they began their ascent. "Why are we leaving the lab?"
"Well, to tell you the truth, this is just a theory," Szayel responded as the hatch over their heads began opening up, flooding the interior with sunlight. "But I can't help thinking that the closer that we can get to the Anomaly, without so much to obstruct it, the better the systems will work."
The other man reached up to adjust his iconic hat, before giving the pink-haired Arrancar a reassuring smile and nodding. "Yes, well, at the very least, it certainly couldn't hurt."
With that, they continued their rise to the top of the building. The Octavio Espada looked over to the former Shinigami. "Alright, let's go!"
. . . ...o.o.o... . . .
Gotei Council Facilities...
Central Operations Command Hub...
"This... this is terrible." Shunsui remarked as he looked over the intel. "The attacks being made by the enemy, they're just getting worse and more intense with every time they lash out against us."
"This... mess." The tall man continued grimly. "This entire ordeal, it really is turning into nothing short of a goddamned nightmare." The tall scruffy-faced swordsman, with his well-known lock of hair which fell across his face, cursed silently to himself as he looked over the information.
"And the worst part of all this," he paused. "Is the fact it's just going to get worse."
"Inform our people," he started as he stepped forward. "Instruct them to brace themselves for the next wave of the enemy attacks, and to keep in mind that it's going to get worse with each round!"
"We have to remember that that inscrutable man, Darkwood, is one our enemies." Shunsui went on to state as he folded his arms. "We can't underestimate just how powerful he really is, or the full extent of just how much a knows," he said, as much for himself as the others. "I wouldn't be at all surprised if he knew the reality of how close we've been pushed to the limits by all these attacks..."
. . . ...o.o.o... . . .
Huecco Mundo...
"Everyone... ready, aim," Cyrus started, gazing out across the area below. "...Fire!"
Known colloquially as "The Voice", the loquacious Arrancar wore black trousers and specially made martial arts 'slippers', along with a dark-red long-sleeved tunic- featuring black and silver embroidery- and a black sash tied around his waist. A sword was tucked into the side of it...
From his vantage point, on an elevated expanse that extended outward across the face of the mountain, overlooking the surrounding area. The charismatic Hollow watched with some interest at the unfolding devastation caused by the barrage of arrows that were loosed. The innumerable missiles had been sent sailing across the land, finding their targets as they rained down upon the enemy horde!
The battery of arrows, unleashed by the combined forces of the Shinigami and his own people, spread chaos throughout the swarm of shadowy Phantoms as they they struck. Right away, countless bursts of flames went on like blooming flowers as the attacking force came to a halt...
"This is it, everyone," Cyrus went on, before drawing his sword. "As we previously discussed, those tasked with maintaining the high ground, remain here." He continued. "And now... For the rest of you, fall in line with me," the Arrancar paused. "And get ready to move."
With that, he turned to the advancing enemy. "Charge!"
. . . ...o.o.o... . . .
Elsewhere in Soul Society...
Everything was dark and blurry...
Yumichika's eyes opened a crack, the purple-haired Shinigami letting out a protracted groan, followed then by his eyes fluttering as he started coming around...
And, in that moment, realization fully dawned on him, causing the Shinigami to sit bolt upright, his eyes now wide, only to instantly regret the rapid movement!
After a moment of this, the Soul Reaper reached inside his robes with his off-hand- returning with his palm stained crimson. Taking a moment to gather himself, he reached up and tore open the front of his black outer robe. This, in turn, revealed a metal place- itself almost cleaved in two, and having only minimally succeeded in protecting him from the attack that had previously felled him.
Slipping his arms out of the sleeves of the battered black garment, he then went about undoing all the ties that were bound up around his shoulders and his waist, as he subsequently discarded the outer layer of his Soul Reaper uniform, before dropping the metal plate as he he moved on...
It was at this point, that he shifted and moved over to check the prone figure of Yoko Watase...
After a moment of this, his fingertips pressed against the pulse of her throat. "Yoko..." He murmured aloud bitterly to himself as he drew back from the woman. "...Dead."
"Dammit..." Yumichika cursed inwardly on registering the fate of the fallen woman, before he looked around the immediate area, before shifting himself back up onto his feet.
. . . ...o.o.o... . . .
Elsewhere in Huecco Mundo...
Captain Sajin Komamura had braced himself in anticipation, centering his broad fur-covered frame as the leather-clad man had gone on the attack, the two of them locking up.
The other fighter had already activated his "Killmeister Mode", so when the Captain had drawn his Zanpakuto "Tenken" and activated his Shikai, he wasn't shocked in the slightest when the rowdy man had raised his armored hands and caught the giant blade mid-swing!
Steam shot out from the pipes in his shoulders, while the pistons in his elbows dropped, transferring the force of the kinetic energy into his hands and driving the wolfish fighter back...
The Shinigami was fast becoming fed up with the seemingly never-ending deadlock that he'd become caught up in with the other man. And it was this realization, in turn, proved to be the catalyst for him to at last take things to the next level, leaving his troops to look on in concern as he'd gone on to summon the full extend of his Zanpakuto's powers- unleashing his Bankai.
"Incredible!" The man exclaimed.
Lenny, for his own part, just looked to be left in a state of awe, grinning broadly even as the towering armored Samurai Warrior appeared before him in a flash.
"Incredible!" The fighter murmured under his breath, in a genuine expression of awe as he beheld the sight of the colossus. Lenny looked on as it moved to swing its giant weapon towards him. He brought up his now-armored hands to defend himself. The difference this time, was that when he reached up to capture and deflect the attack, he was unprepared for the force of the strike!
Lenny was sent flying by the devastating blow!
The man collided with a nearby rock face, breaking through it in an explosive cloud of dust and falling rubble, with Komamura watching silently as Lenny toppled forward from the wreckage...
Komamura observed him intently as the man attempted to right himself, only to falter in his efforts and wind up cough up blood for his troubles!
The armor and the other parts that came with his powers were rapidly vanishing- along with his ability- and he held his sides as he looked on the other warrior. "This is perfect... I- I had to know!"
With that, he toppled forward, chuckling softly to himself...
"What the hell are you going on about?" Komamura inquired cautiously as he stepped forward, holding his weapon aloft and aiming the point of his sword towards the man a he approached.
He looked up with a smile, blood running down the sides of his chin. "No matter how strong a person becomes, there's certain 'enemies' that no one can defeat." Lenny began. "And... my unbeatable foe just happens to be my own body." The man continued. "I'd rather lose to you than to some cancer."
"W- what?!" Komamura replied in a startled tone, re-sheathing his sword. He motioned to his men to stay back as he advanced. "Than that could mean that you're... dying?"
"Like I said," the battered man explained as he shifted into a seated position. "Captain, you're also a fighter, so you should understand my position." Lenny continued. "Surely... You'd prefer to meet your own end gloriously in battle?" He asked of him. "Heh... Correct me if I'm wrong."
"Personally, I'd rather die fighting a worthwhile adversary, rather than countenance subjecting myself to a slow death, withering away in a hospital bed." Lenny admitted to him, his words punctuated with a bloody cough as he went on. "After all, death is the fate of all warriors... and so, I sought you out
"I had a good feeling about you, if only from second-hand information... But then, after our fight in Karakura, I knew you were the one."
"So..." The Shinigami Captain began as he re-sheathed his weapon. "You wanted to die in battle?"
"Yeah... And I can feel the affects of your attack." Lenny calmly replied. "My ribs are a wreck, and it also feels like you definitely punctured at least one of my lungs in the process."
"Captain Sajin Komamura..." He toppled onto his back, still smiling. "Somehow... I knew... you would be the person who... could give me... a good death."
. . . ...o.o.o... . . .
The Shinô Reijutsuin...
As previously instructed, Kyoko helped Mila Rose get to safety, as the smallish blonde Vizard stayed on the moved and handled the oncoming influx of enemy attackers!
The stunning, darkly-tanned and blonde-haired woman turned to look back, unleashing a yellow Cero with the swing of Tiburon- light glinting off the edge of her distinctive Zanpakuto. The blast of focused of concentrated reiki successfully wiped out a number of Phantoms trying to flank Hiyori.
The smallish surly Vizard could only turn to look on in amazement as the yellowish Cero had touched down in a flash of light, instantly wiping out her pursuers...
Hiyori paused to look upwards, exchanging a knowing glance with the Tercera Espada, all the while as the buxom and imposing figure of the Arrancar remained on the move- moving from rooftop to rooftop as she continued to battle the oncoming horde of Shadows.
Meanwhile, as the fighting continued outside, Mila Rose reached a point of relative safety within the corridor of the female dorms. In the wake of this, the Fraccion sat down in an effort to compose herself and collect her thoughts as her wounded flesh finished healing.
And so, it was in that moment, that the dark-skinned Fraccion began to fully register the presence of a number of young female Shinigami, all of them looking expectantly at her...
"These girls have come to trust Mistress Halibell," Mila Rose mused silently. "Just as they're certain I'm one of her Fraccions, so they trust me as well." The Arrancar thought. "And so, all these silly pretty Shinigami girls are suddenly looking to me- a Hollow, a Monster- to protect them."
After a moment, as her breathing normalized, Mila was hit with yet another realization...
Of course she would protect them!
The plain and simply truth was that the safety of all of these young women was important to her, as for Mila Rose, they were most definitely something worth protecting!
. . . ...o.o.o... . . .
Division Four, Medical Center...
Having finished healing the wounds of the patient laying before her, Orihime rose back to her feet as she was suddenly overcome by an uneasy feeling.
The young woman was struck by an unfamiliar thought: She was needed elsewhere!
Orihime wasn't even certain about where it was that she was being drawn, except the only thing the curvaceous redhead 'knew' for sure- beyond anything more than a vague feeling- was that fact that the location of where she was needed was somewhere beyond the bounds of the Fourth Division...
Inexplicably compelled by an mysterious urge to leave, and with nothing more than her own instincts to act upon, she vanished from the Medical Center in a flash!
And so it was, that in a flurry of movement, and with her body now once more radiating the glowing golden aura that she'd previously exhibited, Orihime appeared outside of the Fourth. The sunset-haired girl was initially taken aback by the extent of the carnage and devastation, but quickly fortified herself as she resolved go sate the strange alien urge that she felt.
It was then, that she experienced an overwhelming need to be at Ulquiorra's side, which only further served to egg her on, as she vanished from the scene in a flash...
Ironically, at the same time as all of this had been unfolding, the Cuatro Espada was experiencing a similar sensation- an irresistible pull and a need to be at the side of his mate!
. . . ...o.o.o... . . .
Slash took a moment to collect himself...
The truth was that the swordsman had never been pressed to the extent that he had been on this day. This was in no small part due to the fact that the female Shinigami had managed to do something that he had previously believed to be all but impossible.
She'd wounded him, she'd successfully managed to harm him!
Slash began to realize that this result was a failure on his part, as the swordsman had never previously paused to consider just how much emotions and passion might factor into a battle. And in that moment, he realized this limited perspective had contributed to his failure to foresee a circumstance in which a warrior would throw themselves heedlessly into a fight, without worry of injury...
And while it had cost the woman dearly, her desperate gambit had paid off. And the reality of this was no more obvious then to the very man in question. And so, in that moment, he registered the arrival of a soft wind as a slow breeze swept across the area- jostling the branches of the surrounding trees.
A nearby sakura tree shuddered, shedding the vibrant pink petals of its cherry blossom into the wind, falling around him. The dreadlocked man cursed silently as he regarded the wound that the woman had delivered to his abdomen- along with the crimson blood marring his hand.
However, he didn't have long to mull this over, as he heard footsteps directly behind him!
The dreadlocked fighter turned around, only to be greeted by the sight of the equally harrowed figure of Yumichika Ayasegawa, the purple-haired effete swordsman glaring at him, his sword in hand.
The Brethren smirked to himself. "Well now, what do we have here?" Slash mused as he regarded the other man, all the while never breaking eye-contact with him. "Another valiant warrior, it seems... And once again, one on a path of righteous vengeance." He inquired. "How am I doing, so far?"
"What's the point in denying it..." Yumichika countered as he did his best to steady himself in the face of the enemy before him. "You... you know full well why I'm here!"
"Of course." Slash replied, brandishing sword in a similar manor. "The only issue is, that you and I- we're both in a pretty sorry state." He observed wryly. "So then, the only question left in all of this, is if there's enough left in you to make good on your vow and take me down?"
. . . ...o.o.o... . . .
Orihime was now fully engulfed by the illuminating golden aura of her powers as she flew across the battered landscape of the Soul Realm- energy from her Shun Shun Rikka hair-pins extending outwards and forming into a sort of Roman laurel wreath around her head...
Then, the young woman became aware of another presence in the area, and she somehow sensed the hostile intent they were radiating and clearly intending to intercept her...
An explosion went off in front of her, causing the redhead to come to a sudden stop, just in time as a man appeared in front of her, sporting a bandanna tied across their forehead and holding up their dark hair, and sporting a Stooges t-shirt and camouflage pants and combat boots."Yo bitch!"
The curvy fiery-haired youth instantly recognized him as one of the people present during the second attempt to capture her. "You remember me?" He exclaimed. "Because I fuckin' remember you, just as I still remember how you killed Pierce!" The man continued. "And so, now I'm taking you down!"
Hawk rapidly formed balls of red energy at both of his palms, then launched them at her, exploding on impact against the redhead's barrier. "You do remember that, right?!" The man went on angrily, his jaw trembling slightly as he glared at her. "The moment when you fucking killed Pierce, because I sure as shit do! I remember it as clear as day, and I'm gonna make you pay for that!"
He was about to form up more of his explosive attacks, when he was knocked to the ground by none other than that of Byakuya Kuchiki. "Inoue-san." He offered the woman politely.
"Due to your unique energy, I sensed right away when you were out on the move, and so I suspected you might run into some trouble." He explained coolly as he folded both of his arms across his back as he held him down. "Therefore, when I became aware of this man's proximity to you, I suspected that you might be in need of some assistance, and so acted accordingly."
"As such, you can leave this one to me." Byakuya continued calmly. "And now, as for yourself, Inoue-san, I suspect that you have more pressing business elsewhere."
"Thank you." Orihime answered, receiving a nod from the nobleman. She then looked to the struggling man that was currently pinned to the ground...
"It's not fair!" Hawke cried out. "You take Pierce away, and it ends up like this?!"
Suddenly, the sunset-haired girl was struck by man's expression and the tone of his voice, and was able to detect something familiar in him. "Hawke, you're name is 'Hawke', right?"
Surprised, he looked up to her, his expression a mix of fury and confusion. "The truth is, for whatever it's worth, I do remember the events of that day." Orihime continued. "The memories of what happened that day still haunt me, even now. And, I do understand you, better than you might think."
"W- what are saying?!" Hawke demanded from his prone position.
"I've also lost someone important to me... and I came very close to losing another." Orihime responded as she addressed the man. "So, for what it's worth, I truly am sorry."
With that, she shared a nod to the dark-haired Captain, before taking off!
. . . ...o.o.o... . . .
In Huecco Mundo, Nelliel and Grimmjow were speeding across the expanse of the white sands, when they sensed a familiar individual, moving en-route towards them...
Not long after, they spotted a figure in the distance. It was a woman in slinky skin-tight red dress, with her luxurious brown hair and white feather boa flapping behind her as she moved. Instantly, Nelliel and Grimmjow recognized the woman- clad in one of her dresses, complete with a plunging "V" neckline that showed off her cleavage and the slits on both sides that ran up to her waist!
"Mei Westward," the female Captain started pointedly with a smile. "Somehow, I just had this feeling that you'd be showing up sooner or later!" The green-haired woman remarked.
Grimmjow smiled to himself. "You know it, babe," he began. "The three of us, we're inseparable!"
Mei returned the other woman's smile. "He's right, you know!" She called out. "When it comes to you, Grimmjow, and me..." The Arrancar went on. "We all know the three of us are a matched set!"
"As if either of us would miss out on a chance to spend more time with you!" The blue-haired Espada exclaimed with a broad smile a deep laugh as the three of them moved.
For her part, Nelliel merely smiled knowingly as she chuckled to herself...
. . . ...o.o.o... . . .
Back in Soul Society, in the heat of the battle...
Ozzy stood at the head of a mob of Shadow Warriors, strategically throwing his knives at the various enemy targets, only for more of the bladed weapons to subsequently appear in his hands.
As soon as he rounded a corner, he took in the sight of a leggy buxom woman clad in a skimpy red outfit and white material wrapped around her head, fully kitted out with the full-sized backpack style fuel tanks and brandishing the weapon portion of an old-school flame-thrower.
Grinning wildly, with her eyes covered by welding goggles, she gave a battle cry as she squeezed the trigger and unleashed a devastating jet of searing flames onto the horde of Shadows!
"Time to light these mother-fuckerss up!" Kukaku exclaimed as all of her attackers ablaze.
The black-clad Brethren halted, an uncertain look on his face. "What the...?" Ozzy commented as the flames reflected off of the lenses of his glasses. "What am I looking at- this is nuts!
"Fuck it!" He exclaimed, dropping his weapons to the ground, as he held his hands up defeat...
. . . ...o.o.o... . . .
Yumichika and Slash regarded one another for a moment...
The dreadlocked man shifted his posture, gripping the handle of his katana with both hands, as the purple-haired Shinigami similarly prepared himself and brandished his Zanpakuto.
A handful of secants passed and the wind rustled between them, and then... At last, the two warriors advanced towards each other and brought their swords to bare and striking out with the blades of their weapons- creating an audible "clang" as their swords collided, before landing!
Slash came to a stop, and turned to look back to the other man. "Yumichika Ayasegawa..." He started calmly as he looked to the man in question. "...It seems, fate was truly on your side this day."
The Shinigami watched as Slash toppled forward, crumbling into a motionless heap!
Yumichika exhaled, before dropping down onto his knees, before falling back into a seated position...
With the adrenaline that moments earlier been coursing through his system ebbing away as fast as it had kept him going, he was now dealing with the aftermath of the come down. Without the benefit of the natural stimulant, Yumichika started to register the extent of the affect of his injuries. Having now suffered a second grievous injury, he began to put together just how much blood he had lost...
His entire body was starting to feel heavy as exhaustion overtook him, to the extent that it wasn't long before he fell onto his back. He sighed, and smiled as he looked up at the sky. "Ikaku..." The Shinigami started in a thoughtful tone. "You know, I think I understand now, what you said that day..."
The purple-haired man let out a faint chuckle. "And, you know what," Yumichika went, watching the clouds moving overhead. "You're right." He declared. "...I think that this is a good death."
. . . ...o.o.o... . . .
Apacci had leapt through the air, now in her Resurreccion as she wielded her circular blades, right as a giant black spike fired out of the sand- into the air tearing into her side and sending her reeling!
The wounded Arrancar cried out in pain, clutching her side as she was sent plummeting towards the ground, only to instead wind up colliding with a stranger, before falling into their arms. Knocking the wind out of her mysterious benefactor, the two of them toppling to the ground.
Looking around, she realized she was being cradled in the arms of a tall, tomboyish female Shinigami with wild cropped sandy hair and medium-brown eyes. "Oh my god, are you alright?!"
Feeling light-headed from the blood loss, Apacci merely responded with a smile. "Hey, I'm Apacci." She replied in what she felt was smooth manner. "So, what's your name?"
. . . ...o.o.o... . . .
Meanwhile, back at the Twelfth...
The large industrial lift rose up towards the opening above, until completing its ascent as it delivered the two men and their equipment all the way up to an exterior part of the Twelfth.
Szayel deposited a massive power cell, connecting it the complex machine. "This will make sure that the system has more than enough to maintain full functionality for some time."
Urahara moved to check the read-outs on the controls. "All systems check out, we're good to go."
The ex-Shinigami looked to the display, which read ninety-eight percent. "Szayel," he called to the other man as the progress display moved up. "We're now at ninety-eight percent."
"We have to be ready to act immediately." The Octavio Espada responded. "This is it... We're finally at the precipice, from here on- there can be only success or failure."
Urahara looked over to the other man. "Szayel, we're now at ninety-nine percent."
"Excellent." The bespectacled Arrancar responded, as he moved to power up the system.
"We've done it, we're at one-hundred percent!"
"Now I just need to see to bringing Orihime and Ulquiorra here..." The statement uttered by the pink-haired man caused Urahara to look to him in confusion. "Its... a long story."
"Perhaps, there's someway of getting in contact with him..."
. . . ...o.o.o... . . .
It had only been a few minutes since Ulquiorra had returned back to his sealed form, when he hear a beeping sound, causing him to reach into his pocket and bring up an earpiece, which he then affixed to his right ear. "This is Ulquiorra," he started tersely. "Who is this?"
"This is Szayel, I'm glad I got your frequency correct." The Octavio's voice through the earpiece.
"Get to the point of this." He snapped into the speaker.
"I need you head over to the twelfth." He continued. "Listen to me, I know that this is coming from out of nowhere, but I have a legitimate reason for asking for this."
"Oh, and what would that be?" Ulquiorra quipped.
"I... was contacted by someone you're familiar with," he replied. "The Man in White."
This earned the attention of the green-eyed Arrancar. "Go on?"
"We've been working on a machine that can teleport people, and it's ready. The man said that both you and Orihime need to be the ones we send through the Anomaly."
Ulquiorra paused for a moment, before nodding to himself. "Very well then."
. . . ...o.o.o... . . .
Urahara happened to spot when Ulquiorra stepped out of a Gargantua near the edge of the Twelfth...
He then turned to the other man. "Look, Szayel, he's arrived."
"Good, now I just need to alert him to where we are..." He spoke as he started checking the pockets of his labcoat-style Captains' jacket. "Ah, this should do it!" The Arrancar announced as he produced what appeared to be a fancy-looking LED flashlight and adjusted some setting on it.
Nearby, Ulquiorra spotted a bright red flashing light, and took this as a signal, prompting him to head towards it and touch down on the roof, where Szayel and Urahara were, alongside a large and complex set-up of sophisticated machinery. "So this is the device that you mentioned?"
The two men nodded as he continued. "And this is supposed to be able to send someone through that Anomaly, to whatever is on the other side of it?" He asked. "Provided that this thing actually does what it's meant to... What then would someone do after you send them to their destination?"
"We actually anticipated that." Urahara chimed in.
"Yes, we designed this, to serve as a sort of 'beacon'." Szayel explained as he handed him an object similar in size to a garage door remote to Ulquiorra. "Once you activate this, we should be able to lock on to the signal that it emits and transport you back here in the same way we sent you."
Ulquiorra gave incredulous look. "Should?"
"You must understand, we're dealing with a lot of unknowns." Szayel retorted. "We've done everything we can to ensure that this works- hell, I even transported myself to make sure the process wasn't lethal to humanoid life." He went on. "But there's a point where all we have to work with are theories."
Just then, Orihime appeared in a flash of movement and light, her aura vanishing as joined them.
All three of them looked at her, but it was Urahara who spoke up. "Inoue-san, how on earth did you know to come here at this exact time?" The scruffy man asked.
"I just had this sudden sensation that I needed be with Ulquiorra, and my these new powers just kicked in and before I knew it, I was literally flying in this direction."
"And you just knew to head directly to this location?" Szayel asked.
The young woman shook her head. "No, I could sense where he was."
"You sensed him?" The Octavio asked in a confused tone.
Urahara chimed in, saying: "Well, from everything that I've heard, this does seem to be something of a regular aspect for either of these two when it comes to the other."
"Interesting..." The bespectacled Arrancar. "But that's an issue for another time. Right now, we have to get ready to do this." He went on to add. "I'm powering up the platform."
Orihime looked at the technical set-up. "What exactly is all of this?"
With the two men busy, Ulquiorra turned to her. "I've been told that this system should be able to send a person through the Anomaly, all the way to whatever exists on the other side."
The fiery-haired girl turned to him. "Wait, does this mean that you're the one they're going to send?"
"Do you remember the man dressed entirely in white that you saw when you regained consciousness after you fainted in the kitchen?" He asked, receiving a nod. "Apparently, he made contact with Szayel earlier today, saying that we needed to be the ones to go through the anomaly."
"However," Ulquiorra continued "If you don't feel safe with this, you don't have to."
Before she could respond, Szayel spoke up. "We're almost ready, so you should step onto the platform."
With that comment, the Cuatro Espada proceeded to do as suggested...
Orihime rushed to join him, throwing her arms around him. "Whatever happens, I'm going with you," she proclaimed. "Because, I can't imagine myself anywhere else other than by your side."
"Well it seems the matter is settled." Szayel commented. "And just in time, it appears," the pink-haired Arrancar went on to state. "Because we're ready to this."
"Wait," Urahara called out, while reaching his hand into his pocket producing a metallic cylindrical object and handing it to him. "Ulquiorra, take this with you."
"What is this?" Ulquiorra asked curiously.
"It looks like a Light-Saber." Orihime observed.
The shopkeeper audibly exhaled. "Listen, during the second invasion of Karakura, I used a weapon I built on Darkwood and it succeeded in harming him." He explained. "It generated a concentrated burst of light. This generates a sustained beam of focused light. So it might be useful."
Ulquiorra activated, causing a beam of light- almost white, with light blue along the 'edges'- project forth from the top of the object grasped in his hand.
"Oh wow, it's a real life Light-Saber." Orihime observed excitedly.
Urahara threw his hands up. "Ugh, fine, whatever!"
The Cuatro Espada deactivated the weapon and tucked into one of the pockets of white hakama, then wrapped his arm and drew her in close to him. "Alright, we're ready to go." He declared.
Ulquiorra turned to Orihime, wrapping his arms around her waist, as she did the same as they looked into each other's eyes. "It's the same for me, I also couldn't image a future without you." The Arrancar declared warmly to her as leaned in to share a kiss with her.
Szayel and Urahara exchanged knowing nods, before the pink-haired Arrancar pressed a series of buttons on the control panel. "Alright... here. we. go!"
Energy began rising up all around the couple on the platform, before a pillar of light shot up and duo vanished in flash of light, leaving the two scientists silent.
"What now?" Urahara asked.
Szayel took a breath, then exhaled. "What else?" He asked. "We hope."
(- End of Chapter XCIV... -)
As I'm about to upload this chapter, I can honestly say that- for me, at least- a lot happened in this particular chapter...
For one, the fallout from all of the fighting continues, even as certain characters are moving ever closer towards some sort of culmination. And so, both Szayel and Kisuke are putting their respective technologies to the test. Still, as some readers have observed, there's an inherent level of absurdity in their respective inventions, with Szayel creating a 'Transporter' and Urahara building a Light-Saber. That's why there instances of both being lamp-shaded.
Oh, and one more thing of note that some of you might find interesting... I've dropped a few hints here and there, but it was my intent in writing this chapter that it would be pretty clear that Hawke and Pierce were a couple. I intentionally kept this on the down-low, as I felt it would work better as an Easter Egg for the readers. That said, I'm curious to hear what you guys think. I already have two gay couples among the good guys.
One of them is, of course, Mila Rose & Kyoko. As for the other? Well, I'll leave that for you guys to work out...